


The Protector

by PrincessOfMalec (Treasure7)



Category: Shadowhunter Chronicles - All Media Types, Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Declarations Of Love, Fluff, Graphic description of torture, Happy Ending, Hurt Magnus Bane, Hurt/Comfort, Protective Alec Lightwood, The ending is so fluffy though, Torture
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-05
Updated: 2016-07-05
Packaged: 2018-07-21 19:49:19
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,487
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7401460
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Treasure7/pseuds/PrincessOfMalec
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Wake up, Warlock”</p><p> </p><p>Magnus sputtered awake as the freezing water hit him, drawing a deep breath as he shook the sleep from his head. He looked around to glare at whoever had thrown the bucket of water on him, ready to send them back to whichever hell they’d obviously escaped from.</p><p> </p><p>Or</p><p>The one where I needed some protective!Alec and some hurt/comfort-fluff and this happened.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Protector

**Author's Note:**

> I got the prompt below a couple of months ago, but had no idea what to write for it so I kind of let it lie. Then the whole drama with the poll happened and I felt like this whole fandom needed some malec being loving and protective over each other.
> 
> Please head the warnings about graphic descriptions of torture, if that's something that triggers you. It's nothing sexual at all, but the torturer uses a knife so please be aware of that.
> 
> The prompt, asked by "Anonymous" was:  
>  _ok here goes nothing: Magnus is kidnapped by circle member and tortured and Alec swoops in like a disney prince and saves him? lemme know know if i have to change anything ;)_

“Wake up, Warlock”

 

Magnus sputtered awake as the freezing water hit him, drawing a deep breath as he shook the sleep from his head. He looked around to glare at whoever had thrown the bucket of water on him, ready to send them back to whichever hell they’d obviously escaped from.

 

A deep chuckle came from the shadows around him and it wasn’t until he tried to reach for his magic to force them to reveal themselves, that he realized he couldn’t access it. It was as if it was gone, as if it had been stripped from him, the place where he’d always felt it inside of him now an empty hole. Magnus felt his heart seize up in panic and he swallowed hard to keep from showing his fear to his captor. He tried to stand up from his position on the floor, only to find himself chained by the neck, like an animal, unable to stand up without strangling himself. Lifting his hand, the warlock felt at the collar adorning his neck.

 

“I forged it myself. Do you like it?” came a male voice and Magnus knew he recognized it from somewhere, but couldn’t quite place where.

“I’m more of a ‘necklace that doesn’t cut off your breathing’-type of guy myself, but I pride myself in not kinkshaming anyone. Any particular reason I find myself in your unwanted company this evening, whoever you are?” he said, unable to keep the snark from his voice. He still couldn’t believe he’d been too distracted by his phone-call to be able to fend off whoever this was and let them kidnap him.

“Well, the runes on it keeps you from using your magic, so I’m liking it a lot. It’s almost as if you weren’t a freak” the man explained and Magnus wanted to turn him into some weird mix of a toad and a penguin, then they’d see who the freak of nature was.

“As for why you’re here. I need your help” he continued and Magnus couldn’t help but snort at that.

“Usually people tend to call upon me for my services, not kidnap me and chain me to the floor. It doesn’t exactly inspire a good working relationship” he said and hissed as the collar seemed to tighten before slowly dragging him up off the floor into a standing position. The warlock looked around for what might be controlling the chain he was attached to and found a complicated-looking machine in the roof. It was attached to the floor with a hook that was now folded back and no longer keeping the chain in place, which was why Magnus had felt as if he’d been chained to the floor and not to the roof.

 

The man finally stepped out of the shadows and Magnus recognized him almost immediately as one of Valentine’s circle members. Holding on to the collar to lift himself up and stop it from choking him, the warlock looked him over.

“You were much younger the last time I saw you, younger and bloodier” he eventually said. He’d seen Jeremy Pontmercy in the fight when the circle had come to slaughter him and his fellow warlocks. He’d seen him slit the throat of a young warlock-girl, only to be almost split in half as another warlock had ripped his claws through the circle-member. Magnus had been sure there was no way the young man could survive that. Obviously, he’d been wrong.

 

Pontmercy simply ignored what he’d said and started talking as he walked forward to clasp Magnus’ feet and tie them together in his now standing position.

“Don’t want you to get any silly ideas”, he explained and continued:

“You’re going to open up a portal to the ‘Spiral Labyrinth’ for me”, he said and Magnus couldn’t help but cock his eyebrow at that.

“Yeah, no. You can choke me and keep me here for as long as you like, kill me if you want to, but I’m not letting you anywhere near that place” he spat and Pontmercy’s face shrivelled up in rage as he pressed something that made the collar around Magnus’ neck tighten, lifting him up even more and forced the warlock to hold himself up to keep from being choked to death.

The circle member leaned up slightly so his head was only an inch from Magnus’ own.

“Oh, I’m not going to kill you, warlock. But I _would_  like to see how attracted your precious archer-boy would be to you after I’ve put my own marks all over you, “ he whispered before taking out a seraph-dagger and dragging it slowly over the warlock’s chest.

Magnus felt tears rise at the pain from the knife cutting into him and wanted nothing other than to be able to let go of the collar to fight the other man. But he knew that if he let go, he would hang himself and it was a bit hard to fight when your air was being cut off.

 

“Did you know that if I stick this dagger in right… _here_ ” Pontmercy stabbed the knife into Magnus’ side and the warlock gasped in pain and struggled more to keep himself up as the strength in his arms failed him a little. The circle member smiled at his reaction before continuing:

“It won’t hit any vital organs and you won’t die. It’ll hurt like hell, of course, but you won’t die” he said. Magnus glared at him through harsh breaths, fighting to get through the pain.

 

*******

 

“Hello?” Alec answered his phone, running a towel down his face and chest to wipe up the sweat he’d produced from training.

“Is this Alec Lightwood?” a female voice said, sounding stressed and Alec frowned at his phone.

“Yes, who is this?” he answered and was met with a relieved sigh on the other end.

“Oh thank the angel! You have to get to Magnus, and fast! I would go myself but I’ve never been in the warehouse so I can’t portal there, Ragnor won’t pick up and you’re closer than where I could go” she almost screamed down the receiver and Alec felt his heartbeat raise up in worry. Was Magnus hurt?

“What? Why? What’s wrong? Where is he!?” he rambled as he started dressing in his battle-gear, ready to go out and find his boyfriend.

“I don’t know, we were on the phone and all of a sudden there was something that sounded like a struggle and the call got cut off. I’ve tracked him to a warehouse. I’ll send you the address just please hurry up and get there. I can’t feel his magic as strongly anymore and that can only mean one of two things, either his magic is being blocked or….” she stressed and Alec cut her off before she could utter what they both feared the most.

“Just send me the address and I’ll get there!” he said and ended the call. Grabbing his bow, he quickly activated his speed-rune and ran out of the Institute towards the address whoever had made the call had sent him. Towards Magnus.

 

_Please please please be okay! I’m coming, Magnus, just please be okay!_

  


*******

 

Magnus felt as if his arms were burning with the strain of trying to keep himself up and not choke. He wasn’t sure how much longer he could hold out, but he did know that he’d rather die than let any circle member near his kin. It was his job as High warlock to protect them, and Magnus Bane was many things but he was not someone who’d sacrifice someone else for his own survival. He closed his eyes to fend off the tears in his eyes as Pontmercy dragged the knife over his collarbone, ripping the skin there.

“You know it would be so easy for you to stop all of this, if you’d just open that portal I’ll let you go” the other man said and Magnus opened his eyes to glare at him.

“Over my dead body!” he hissed. Pontmercy finally seemed to run out of patience with Magnus’ constant refusal and he kicked the warlock’s feet out from under him, watching with a smile as Magnus scrambled to be able to hold himself up from choking.

“That can actually be arranged. You’re not the only warlock left outside of the labyrinth, Bane. You were just the easiest target to capture” he said and raised his hand to plunge the knife into the warlock’s body once again.

 

“Enjoy the afterlife, warl….” he was cut off by an arrow sticking out of his throat and Magnus watched in disbelief as the circle member crumbled to the ground.

 

*******

 

It took him less than 10 minutes to run to the warehouse and Alec snuck around to the back of the building to find an in that wouldn’t disclose his presence to whoever was in there. He had no idea what he was up against, and cursed himself for being too hasty and not letting someone know where he was going so they could call for backup on his behalf. Well, there was no time to worry about that now.

 

He jumped up to catch a fire escape-ladder and climbed up it to a broken window. Careful of the broken glass, the shadowhunter crawled through it and snuck down the stairs to reach the ground floor of the building.

 

_“You know it would be so easy for you to stop all of this, if you’d just open that portal I’ll let you go”_

 

Alec’s head shot up at the voice and he walked with swift moves towards it, careful to keep quiet and look around for anyone else. It appeared as if the man was alone though, and Alec drew his bow as he slid forward.

 

When he finally reached the room where the man was holding Magnus, the sight before him had him wanting to throw up. Magnus was hanging by the throat, trying desperately to hold himself up to keep from being strangled, and the man before him was holding a knife. A knife he’d obviously been using quite a lot in the time he’d had the warlock locked up in there, if the fresh cuts all over his boyfriend’s chest was anything to go by.

 

Magnus said something that Alec couldn’t hear and the man kicked his feet from under him. Alec boiled in rage as his boyfriend scrambled to get himself upright again.

 

“That can actually be arranged. You’re not the only warlock left, Bane. You were just the easiest target to capture” the man was saying and Alec reached behind himself to knock an arrow. Ideally, he knew the clave would have liked to capture the asshole alive to question him about the motives for kidnapping the warlock, but this was _Magnus_ _and Alec’s sense of duty to the clave flew right out the window wherever he was concerned.

 

Before the man could finish his next sentence, Alec had already taken aim and fired his arrow right at the center of the man’s throat, cutting off all airways and filling them with blood. He watched with a sick sense of happiness as the man crumpled to the floor, dead.

 

Then he looked up and his heart squeezed in his chest as he locked eyes with Magnus.

“Alexander?” came a weak voice and Alec hurried up to him to help lift him up so that the warlock could rest his arms while Alec dug into his pockets for his stele to unlock the collar around Magnus’ neck.

“Yeah, it’s me. I’m here Magnus. You’re going to be okay, just hold on a little longer”, he rambled reassuringly as he finally found his stele and brought it out to draw a quick ‘unlock’-rune, a relieved breath leaving his lips as the collar popped open and Magnus slumped down into his arms.

“Alexander” the warlock mumbled, half unconscious from blood loss and exhaustion. Alec situated him with one arm around the shadowhunter’s neck as he dug out his phone to call whoever had contacted him before. Magnus needed a healer, and that meant a warlock. They picked up on the second ring.

“Alec? Is he okay?” the voice said frantically.

“Please tell me you’re a warlock or at least know one who can help me heal him!” he shouted into the reciever, growing more worried by the second as Magnus’ consciousness was fading away.

“Come on, honey. Just a little bit longer. Please, Magnus, you gotta stay awake just a little bit longer, okay?” he begged the man in his arms before directing his attention back to the phone call.

“Yeah, I’m a warlock. Can you get him to the address I just sent you and Ragnor can portal you to his apartment from there? It’s only a couple of blocks away”, she said and Alec nodded before remembering she couldn’t hear him.

“We’ll be there in two minutes” he said before hanging up the call, lifting up Magnus into his arms and starting to run.

 

“I’ve imagined you lifting me up into those strong arms of yours before, Alexander, not quite in this situation though” the warlock slurred slightly from where his head was resting against Alec’s chest. The shadowhunter smiled at his words, despite the blush creeping up his neck, happy to hear his boyfriend trying to keep awake in some way. He hummed questioningly, trying to encourage Magnus to keep talking without wasting energy on talking and focusing it all on running towards the address.

“Alexander, my Alexander”, the warlock slurred as he cuddled closer to Alec’s chest and Alec could feel the second he started to slip again.

“No no no no, Magnus! Keep awake, please keep awake!” he screamed as he pressed himself harder to get there _faster_.

 

He reached the spot a few seconds later and the portal showed up before he could even think about reaching for his phone again. He stepped through it, clutching Magnus to his chest desperately.

 

He was met with a man with horns, who he assumed was Ragnor, and a blue-skinned woman who he assumed was the woman he’d spoken to. Without saying a word, he steered his steps towards Magnus’ bedroom and carefully laid the man down in the soft bed, brushing his slightly damp hair out of his face. He turned to the two warlocks, who’d followed him into the room. Ragnor was busying himself with mixing some potion and the woman walked towards him.

“Help him” he pleaded, desperate for her to heal Magnus. She gave him a quick nod and he moved out of the way to let her start working on his boyfriend. Her hands glowed green as the magic seeped out of her.

“It was blocked. I can feel it, but it’s weak. He’ll need the potion as soon as I finish so he can recover it faster” she spoke to Ragnor and then she looked up at Alec.

“He’ll be okay, young shadowhunter” she reassured him and Alec wanted so desperately to believe her. But seeing Magnus laying motionless on the bed, his torso cut up to the point where there was hardly any part of it that wasn’t covered in blood, made his heart clench.

“I can’t lose him”, he whispered mostly to himself, but she must have heard him because a gentle smile formed on her lips before she focused all her attention on Magnus once again and he magic seemed to be covering the other warlock within seconds.

 

Alec stepped around the bed to crawl up it and grasp Magnus’ hand. He watched with growing relief as the blood was cleaned off and each and every cut was healed to the point where only a small, barely visible, scar remained.

As soon as the woman was done, Ragnor stepped forward and grasped Magnus’ head to tilt it so that he could pour the potion into his mouth and down his throat. A golden light shone over Magnus’ body as he swallowed and Alec looked up at the two other warlocks for confirmation that it worked.

“He’ll be okay in a couple of hours”, Ragnor confirmed and stepped out of the room. Alec leaned forward to brush a kiss at Magnus’ forehead, blushing when he realised the woman was still in the room.

 

She was smiling down at the other warlock’s unconscious form and Alec reached out with the hand he wasn’t holding Magnus’ in.

“I’m Alec, by the way. I don’t think we’ve met, but thank you for helping him”, he said. She grasped his hand with a smile.

“I’m Catarina. Magnus is one of my oldest friend, of course I’d help him. The man who just left is Ragnor. He’s a bit of a grump, but he loves Magnus. He’ll be back a little later to fuss, no doubt, he just had a client when I called him for help”, she explained and Alec found himself smiling, glad that Magnus had such good friends who cared about him.

“I’m going to stay with him until he wakes up” he said and assumed the woman would want to stay as well, but she nodded at him and walked towards the door, turning around when she opened it.

“Call me when he wakes up, okay?” she asked and Alec nodded in promise.

 

*******

 

It was well into the night when Magnus finally woke up, Alec had called Isabelle and explained where he’d disappeared to. She’d told him to take a few days off and stay with Magnus while he recovered and Alec hadn’t argued with her on that, he wanted to spend as much time as possible with his boyfriend after the incident.

 

He carded his hands through Magnus’ soft hair where he rested against Alec’s chest, sighing softly as he closed his eyes and listened to the warlocks’ breathing, _alive_. Suddenly, the body laying on him tensed a little and Alec’s heart sped up.

“Magnus?” he said, rising slightly so that he could see the moment Magnus’ eyes fluttered open. The warlock made an acknowledging sound and Alec couldn’t help but smile at that.

“How are you feeling?” he asked, his hand returning to card through Magnus’ hair as he relaxed once again. Magnus groaned and cuddled closer to Alec, his arm winding tighter around the shadowhunter’s waist.

“If I say I’m feeling awful, can we stay here a few more hours?”, the warlock said in a hoarse voice and Alec couldn’t help but chuckle at that.

“We can stay here for however long you want to, I’m not going anywhere. You should drink something though”, he answered and reached towards the nightstand for the glass of water he’d set there earlier in case Magnus wanted it when he woke up. The other man smiled up at him as he reached out to take the water, emptying it in just a couple of swallows.

 

He reached up to stroke Alec’s cheek and the shadowhunter leaned into his touch with a soft sigh.

“You were worried”, Magnus stated, a slightly surprised look in his eyes, as if the fact puzzled him. Alec’s heart broke slightly at the thought of Magnus not finding himself worthy of anyone’s worry.

“Of course I was worried about you, Magnus”, Alec frowned, reaching out to grab Magnus’ hand. The warlock smiled at his words, looking down at their joined hands.

“Thank you” he whispered. Alec rose a little from his position, forcing Magnus to do the same. He brought their joined hands up to his mouth, pressing a kiss to the warlock’s hand before speaking.

“Magnus, you mean the world to me. You don’t have to thank me for worrying about you. Never.” he said and Magnus looked up into his eyes again, tears filling his own.

“I’m okay now though” he said, his voice still only a whisper and Alec shook his head.

“You were kidnapped and tortured, Magnus. If you’re insinuating that I should leave you just because your wounds have been healed, then you are shit out of luck. I’m staying for at least the next couple of days” the shadowhunter answered. Magnus’ eyes darkened at the memory and Alec knew he shouldn’t ask him right now, but he really needed to know:

“What happened?” he asked, running his thumb over Magnus’ in comfort. The warlock’s grip on his hand tightened and he looked away from Alec as he answered:

“I was on the phone with Cat. She was asking me about you and I guess I got too caught up in my description because before I knew it something hard hit my head and my vision was swimming.” he started, laying back down with his head on Alec’s chest before he continued:

“I woke up some time later, I’m not sure how long, when Pontmercy - that’s the circle member you killed- threw a bucket of water on me. He’d put a collar around my neck, some runes on it to block my magic. At first, I thought he’d chained me to the floor. You know how those assholes likes to compare us to wild animals. But after I’d woken up, it turned out he’d made some type of device that was only anchored in the floor, but really situated in the roof. He pressed a button or something and the collar tightened around my neck before lifting me up off the floor and then…” he broke off and Alec bent down to press a reassuring kiss to Magnus’ head.

“You don’t have to describe it to me if you don’t want to” Alec whispered, unable to make his boyfriend relive the events.

“He wanted me to open a portal to the Spiral Labyrinth”, Magnus said and Alec felt rage build up again.

“He wanted to get to the other warlocks” he almost growled and Magnus nodded in confirmation.

 

They fell silent after that, Magnus released Alec’s hand, wound his arm around him and cuddled closer to the shadowhunter as Alec ran his hand through the warlock’s hair.

“I’m proud of you” Alec said after a couple of minutes had passed and Magnus lifted his head a little to press a kiss to where Alec’s shirt was peaking open by his collarbone.

“Thank you for saving me, Alexander. My hero”, he whispered.

Alec smiled at that, his hand reaching down to tip Magnus’ head up as he bent down and captured the warlocks’ lips with his own.

 

It was only supposed to be a quick kiss, but Magnus laid down on the bed beside Alec and grabbed the shadowhunter’s waist to pull the other man over him. Alec gladly followed, a smile growing on his lips.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” he asked, still pressing small kisses to the warlock’s lips.

Instead of answering the question, Magnus rose a little to rid himself of the T-shirt Alec had dressed him in earlier. He smiled as the shadowhunter’s eyes traveled down his body and grabbed a hold of his boyfriend’s hair to drag him down for a kiss.

Feeling Magnus’ lips move against his own, passionate and alive where they had been cold and unmoving in his unconsciousness, made something glow in Alec’s heart and he moaned into his boyfriend’s mouth. The shadowhunter broke the kiss and let his mouth travel over Magnus’ neck down towards his chest, leaving small kisses and nips in his wake. He looked up at Magnus, making sure the warlock’s eyes were locked on him before he dropped his focus on the scar left at the other man’s collarbone. Brushing his thumb over the skin, Alec pressed a lingering kiss against it before moving on to the scar left just beneath Magnus’ nipple and giving it the same treatment. He did the same thing to every scar left on the warlock’s body, Catarina’s healing magic unable to completely heal the wounds left by a seraph dagger.

“He said you wouldn’t want me after he’d left his marks on me”, the warlock said quietly and Alec looked up to meet his eyes again, frowning as he saw the tears running down Magnus’ cheeks. He climbed back up and wiped away the tears with his thumb before tilting his head up to force the other man to meet his eyes.

“There’s nothing that could make me not want you, Magnus. Nothing”, he said and the warlock’s eyes filled with new tears and a look that the shadowhunter recognized all too well. Alec’s heart constricted in his chest at the sight; Magnus didn’t believe him.

“But why?” he asked and Alec had never seen him so vulnerable, so small. He caressed the warlocks’ cheek, wiping away the new tears and took in everything about the man beneath him. The eyes that somehow held so many emotions, yet glamoured the even more beautiful cat eyes that Alec always found himself completely entranced by whenever he got a chance to see them. The strong cheekbones that framed the other man’s beautiful face perfectly. The hair that the warlock was so fond of trying out different styles and colors in. The lips the seemed to fit perfectly against Alec’s own whenever they kissed. But mostly, he took in how the warlock’s mere presence always made the shadowhunter more sure of himself, calmer in a way. How one smile from him could make Alec’s whole day better, regardless of how horrible it had been before. He took in how he couldn’t imagine a day in his life where he wouldn’t want to wake up next to the man, and falling asleep to the sound of his soft snores.

 

“Because I love you, Magnus Bane” he said.

 

Magnus’ eyes flew up in surprise and Alec’s lips twitched in a small smile.

“You… you what?” he asked, and Alec couldn’t help but let a full blown smile bloom on his lips at the amazement in the warlock’s voice.

“I love you, Magnus Bmmph” he tried to repeat, but was cut off by lips pressing forcefully against his own. He opened his mouth to deepen the kiss, but Magnus broke away before they could get any further, his eyes filled with tears once again, but this time out of happiness. The warlock let out a small laugh, seemingly still slightly shocked by Alec’s words.

“You never cease to amaze me, you know that?” he asked and Alec just shrugged in response. His boyfriend then leaned back up towards him, his lips just a breath away from the shadowhunter’s own.

“I love you too, Alexander Lightwood” he said and Alec’s heart sang in his chest at the words as he bent down to bring Magnus into a passionate kiss.

  
Alec _did_ call Catarina to confirm that Magnus had woken up from his recovery-sleep, but not until a few hours later when Magnus was once again snoring softly with his head resting against his boyfriend’s chest, sated and happy.

**Author's Note:**

> Let me know what you thought in the comment-section and make my day! If you want, you can look me up on tumblr.
> 
> You can find me on: **MatthewLightwood-Bane**


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